Anger Loves Sadness
by Svinorita
Summary: Love can strike under the most unlikely of occasions. For Anger it all started with a simple little incident one night which awakened feelings inside him for a certain blue Emotion that he didn't know he cared so deeply about...TEARBRICK STORY REQUESTED BY ORANGEBIRD124.
1. 150 Shades Of Anger

Chapter 1.

It was a cold, wet Thursday night in San Francisco. Inside the Andersen's household, the mood was just as somber for the family of three that were sitting in the lounge room. In fact the tension was so thick in the air, that you could have cut it with a knife!

12 year old Riley Andersen was seated on the sofa and glaring angrily at the TV, a massive frown was scrawled across her face and her brows were knitted so tightly together that it gave her the impression of a mono-brow.

Inside her head, the console was lit up red as Anger pushed some levers as far as they could go, screaming his rage at the screen while flames erupted from the top of his head.

Today had been a day straight out of hell for the normally happy and upbeat teen. First she had woken up with a bad toothache. Then as she had gone to the bathroom to wash her face, she discovered that she had sprouted a pimple the size of a small margarita pizza on her chin!

"There is NO WAY we are going to school looking like THAT!" Disgust had demanded while Joy did her best to convince her green friend that it wasn't the end of the world, and how it would probably be gone by tomorrow. Besides she doubted that mom would let Riley stay home from school just because she had a pimple (albeit one of monstrous proportions like that!)

Disgust had eventually relented although she kept obsessing over it the whole day, stating that people will call Riley a freak and it will tarnish her image forever.

As if that wasn't bad enough, Riley had gone to school only to realize that she had a math test today which she completely forgot to study for. And finally to top it all off, she ended up twisting her ankle during hockey practice after school, and just like that she was told that she would have to miss the finals!

And Riley wasn't the only one who found herself in a bad mood right now…

Across the room from her, her dad Bill was sitting in the armchair and drumming his fingers irritably on the coffee table. Work had been crazy busy today and he had barely had time to stop and take a break. Then on the way home the car's radiator had blown up, leaving him stranded halfway between his workplace and his house during peak hour traffic and he was forced to have the car towed away for repairs while he took the bus home.

Then there's poor Jill to consider as well...she had spent hours preparing a roast for dinner when Riley had burst through the front door limping and slamming her hockey stick on the floor in frustration. When Jill had asked her daughter what happened, Riley had started shouting how "Everything is so unfair and how much her life sucks!"

Then the grumpy teen had stormed off to her room and slammed the door shut, leaving her mother shocked and confused. Then a short time later, her husband Bill came barging through the door with his face looking redder than a tomato and immediately began complaining about his troubles with work and the car to his wife, who was beginning to feel overwhelmed about listening to everyone's problems and soon found her own mood beginning to sour.

In fact she was so preoccupied with trying to make everyone else feel better, that she completely forgot about the roast in the oven…that is until the shrill sound of the smoke alarm going off reminded her! Cursing she rushed to rescue the meal that she had been slavering away over for hours, hoping that it could still be salvaged somehow.

But as she pulled the tray out of the oven, she discovered all her hard work was now burned to a crisp… Growling with frustration she shoved a kitchen chair out of the way and declared how "Enough was enough! If anyone wanted to eat tonight, they would have to prepare something themselves because she was over it!"

Now as the Andersen family were gathered in the lounge room watching the nightly news on TV, the headlines were doing nothing to improve their moods. The top stories tonight covered a range of 'cheerful' topics from an economic crisis and a huge forest fire burning across the Californian wilderness, to scientists proclaiming that climate change is getting far worse and stories of wars and famine becoming more serious in other parts of the world.

Inside Riley's mind, her Emotions were also watching the news through the main monitor and they too were feeling as optimistic about the current state of affairs as their young host.

Anger had worked himself up into a rage and was now pacing in front of the screen, grumbling about how "The world is going to the dogs!"

He stopped his agitated pacing only to kick any unfortunate piece of furniture that happened to be in his way and the top of his head was sprouting flames as he declared, "Can this day get any worse?! All we need now is one of Iceland's volcanoes to erupt and create chaos for air travel to put the icing on the cake!"

Fear was cowering behind the couch and whimpering softly as he watched Anger's tirade. As if Riley's disaster of a day and now the news on TV hadn't been enough! Now Anger was flying into a serious rage and the sight made the scrawny purple Emotion tremble like a sapling caught in a windstorm. Fear could sympathize with how the furniture must be feeling…he himself was often the target of the short red Emotion's fury and he was terrified what might happen if Anger decided to take his frustrations out on him…!

Disgust was rolling her eyes and shaking her head at her red coworker's antics. First Riley was forced to go to school with that monstrosity on her face (which she shouldn't have allowed no matter what the other's said! Now Riley's social image would probably be scarred forever!), and now Anger was overacting and being a jerk!

Over in the corner, Sadness was bawling her eyes out and wailing in between sobs about how "Everything is so awful!" She was crying so much that her tears were leaving small puddles all over the floor of Headquarters…and it didn't appear as if she was going to stop anytime soon.

Even Joy, standing resignedly in the center of the room was watching the drama helplessly. It was her job to quell any tension that arose in the day and try to find the positives in any situation. But even she was struggling to find anything positive to focus on at the moment and all she could do was look on dejectedly while her friends tried to cope with their predicament as best they could.

Anger had momentarily stopped his rant and now had his newspaper rolled up in one hand. With a final grunt of contempt he started to make his way over to the reading section of the room, a small flicker of residual flames still burning from the top of his head. Unfortunately his path happened to go straight past Sadness, who was still weeping bucket loads, and Anger didn't notice the impressive puddle of tears she had created around her until he stepped in one and his foot slid out from under him, sending him sprawling flat on his back with a spectacular splash!

For a few tense moments, all the short red Emotion could do was stare at the ceiling in stunned silence. There was steam billowing out from behind his head as the water extinguished his embers and his newspaper was lying beside him, now completely soaked from the tear puddle and useless.

Slowly a low growl began working its way out of his throat as he prepared to unleash another volley of rage. "This is the last straw…!"

But then something very unusual happened. Lying there in the Sadness puddle on his back, the fiery Emotion suddenly felt a wave of calm wash over him. The cool water actually felt strangely _soothing_ and… _comforting?_

Anger had no idea what was happening to him but for some reason the urge to unleash his temper had unexpectedly abandoned him, and instead he found himself gazing blankly at the ceiling as the shocked silence of his Co-Emotions hung in the air.

Then from beside him Sadness dropped down to her knees and in a pleading voice started babbling, "Oh Anger! I'm so sorry! What have I done? Please tell me you're alright!"

Slowly, Anger looked into her big blue tear-filled eyes, and he noticed how they sparkled like stars. And not just any stars, but the brightest, most beautiful star in the night sky; Sirius. The faintest of smiles started to tug at the corner of his mouth as the little blue Emotion took his hand in hers and sobbed in despair.

"Oh no…I made you hurt yourself didn't I?! I'm always messing things up…" She was taking shaky ragged breaths and dripping fresh tears all over him. "I'm so awful! Riley and everyone else would be better off without me…!"

But Anger didn't hear any of this. It was as if a switch had gone off inside his head and he was lost in his own little fantasy. In his mind he saw himself as the big, red, powerful Roman god of war; Mars…though he actually preferred the Greek version; Aries (Anger-Aries had more of a ring to it!) While above him, he saw his beautiful blue star winking down on him, filling his heart with desire with her teary brilliance…

The other Emotions had gathered around them by now, staring at their red companion with various degrees of concern.

"Nice going Sadness! You broke Anger!" Disgust stated mockingly as she looked down pityingly at the red Emotion, who still had that far-away look in his eyes and was grinning stupidly.

Joy kneeled down beside him and waved her hand in front of his face, but received no response. "He seems pretty out of it." She said worriedly.

Fear approached hesitantly and inquired, "He must have hit his head pretty hard." Then he added with more concern, "Do you think he'll be alright?"

"He has to be!" Wailed Sadness, her tears beginning to soak the fallen Emotion's shirt.

Anger was still daydreaming, his eyes glazed over and mumbling something about how fire and water complete each other when he registered that someone was shaking him rather firmly by the shoulders and calling his name.

 _Why does my shirt feel so wet anyway?_ He thought as the shaking grew more persistent.

Suddenly he felt a sharp pain spread across his face as someone slapped him, _**hard**_ **.**

" **Holy smoke! What is happening?!"** He declared irritably as he sat bolt upright, trying to identify who had dared to hit him.

The other Emotions all cringed and back away from their volatile friend, relieved that he was okay but unnerved by his explosiveness at the same time.

But one Emotion was still kneeling beside him, seemingly unfazed by his outburst. Sadness had stopped crying and was looking at Anger with relief written all over her chubby face.

"Oh thank goodness you're okay Anger!" she said shyly. "I'm so sorry for making you fall over from my tears. Please forgive me!" She was still holding his hand and her grip grew a little bit tighter as she begged.

Anger just looked at her in silent contemplation. He should be feeling furious with her right now for making him look like an idiot in front of everyone. But for some bizarre reason, he just couldn't seem to get angry with her. What was happening to him? Ever since he gazed into her soulful blue eyes, he felt a strange new sensation come over him and he couldn't understand why it made him feel this way.

"Anger?" Sadness asked worriedly.

Slowly and gently the red Emotion slipped his hand out of hers and got to his feet with a grunt. Then without saying a word to anyone he turned and marched off towards his room, leaving them all feeling stunned and speechless by his odd behavior.

After they had watched him disappear from view, Disgust was the first to break the silence. "What on Earth did just happen? I've never seen Anger go so gaga over anyone before!"

Fear was rubbing his sore hand gingerly and replied, "Maybe I shouldn't have hit him so hard! I just wanted to slap some sense into him!" The purple Emotion couldn't help smiling inwardly to himself despite his concern. He thought about all the times Anger had used him as a punching bag and a smug thought entered his mind. _Revenge is a bitter sweet feeling my friend_ …

Joy stood there quietly, staring at the door to the private sleeping quarters that Anger had slammed behind him and smiled knowingly as the realization dawned on her. She glanced over at Sadness, who was looking miserably at the puddle where Anger had been lying in, although she was no longer crying.

The yellow Emotion turned and addressed the others with her cheery voice "Oh don't worry about Anger guys. I think he's just feeling a little humbled by this whole ordeal and he'll be back to his usual fiery self by morning."

She put on a convincing smile and the others all mumbled their agreement. Disgust pointed out that it was quite late and Riley had already gone to bed before announcing that she was ready to retire to her room for the night as well.

Fear said that he wanted to make himself a relaxing cup of tea before he went to bed and still nursing his sore hand, he made his way over to the kitchenette.

Joy looked back at Sadness as the little blue Emotion bade her goodnight and walked over dismally to the console to take her shift at Dream Duty.

Joy began walking to her own room feeling relieved that this crazy day was over and they could all begin again tomorrow with a fresh outlook. She smiled warmly to herself as she thought about what had taken place between Anger and Sadness back there.

She wasn't sure if Fear or Disgust had noticed it, but she felt pretty confident that she had seen it right. The way Anger had looked with fondness into Sadness' eyes, and how he seemed to have _enjoyed_ the way she had expressed her concern for him. She couldn't help getting the impression that Anger was more than just alright…

' _I think Anger has fallen in love…'_ Joy mused to herself happily.

Xxx

 **Author's Note:**

Adam + Eve

Romeo + Juliet

Kim + Kanye…?

Is this mission impossible actually possible?

Do opposites really attract?

Stay tuned till next time to find out!

I want to send out a special thank you to Orangebird124! Thank you for being one of my biggest supports as a new author on Fanfiction! This story was requested by you and I hope that you are enjoying what I've put together so far…things will only get more interesting for our little red and blue friends from here on!

I also want to thank everyone else who is reading and enjoying my stories so far! If I can make even one person smile with my work, then that is reward enough for me!

Svinorita


	2. Cry Me A Puddle

Chapter 2.

Sadness was seated at the console taking her turn at Dream Duty, staring blankly into space while twisting the hem of her sweater absent-mindedly. She was thinking about what had happened between her and Anger earlier and there was confusion flowing through her little blue veins as she struggled to make sense of the strange event.

In front of her, the screen which should be playing a dream for Riley right now, was instead showing only hazy blackness like a TV screen with no reception. Sadness sighed miserably as she realized that there would probably be no dreams for their exhausted host tonight…

 _Poor Riley must be tossing and turning restlessly in her sleep._ The blue Emotion mused woefully. _And some of it is probably my fault…_

Sadness fought back the tears and took a few deep breaths as a wave of guilt washed over her. She should have tried to help comfort Riley throughout the day instead of just standing there and crying uselessly. Now she thought that Riley would be sleep-deprived because of her as well.

 _Why did I even volunteer to take Dream Duty tonight in the first place?_

Today was initially supposed to be Joy's turn to monitor Riley while she slept. She would probably have done a much better job too by playing some happy memories or leaving her positive influence in some other way to help take Riley's mind off the awful day she had, thereby ensuring that the poor girl could at least wake up feeling more optimistic about tomorrow.

But Sadness couldn't help noticing how tired and drained the yellow Emotion had looked tonight after trying unsuccessfully to cheer everyone up all day, and it had made her feel bad for her friend. So the little blue Emotion had kindly offered to take her shift for her tonight so Joy could get some much needed rest.

Although Joy did protest slightly that Sadness didn't have to do that for her, the short Emotion noticed the look of gratitude in her friend's eyes and the issue was settled. Besides Sadness doubted that she could get any sleep after the incident with Anger…

 _Anger_. For some reason she found herself unable to stop thinking about him. Even now all she could see in her mind was that strange look in the fiery red Emotion's eyes as he lay there in her tear puddle, unresponsive to any of the others attempts to revive him from his state of stupor, his gaze fixed on her as she desperately tried to apologize for causing him to fall and hit his head.

But she couldn't help feeling that he wasn't just staring _at_ her. He had looked into her eyes with such intensity that it was almost as if he were staring deep into her soul…

She bit her lip thoughtfully as she tried to comprehend what that could have meant. She had expected him to fly into a rage and start shouting all kinds of profanity at her for making him look bad in front of all the other Emotions. That would have been a typical reaction from Anger and she wouldn't have blamed him if he had acted in that way. It was only in his nature after all…

But instead she was surprised to see such _softness_ in his eyes when he looked at her. And she noticed something else too which only added to the confusion swirling around in her head. She thought that she registered a powerful sense of _longing_ in his gaze? And then there was the way his hand had gently squeezed her fingers while she was trying to comfort him…

Suddenly she felt a soft tap on her shoulder that startled her from her thoughts.

"Hey mind if I join you Kiddo?" She turned to find Anger standing beside her, looking at her hesitantly. Shifting his gaze to the floor, the red Emotion mumbled quietly, "I couldn't sleep either."

"Oh, of course Anger." Sadness replied softly. She gestured over to the couch and the two Emotions sat down next to each other, both feeling a little awkward.

A brief moment of silence followed before Sadness looked over to him and ventured, "Is there…is there something you wanted to talk about?"

Anger looked into her eyes and a tiny smile touched his lips before turning his attention back to his feet without a word.

The blue Emotion felt a flutter of guilt in her chest and taking a deep breath, she gently placed her hand on his arm. "I just wanted to say sorry about tonight. You could have really hurt yourself because of me and I feel so bad about what happened…"

She trailed off as the tears threatened to flow forth. Her tears are what caused this whole mess in the first place, and she didn't want to make things any worse.

To her surprise, Anger chuckled softly and replied, "It's okay Kid. Actually I think I needed that knock to the head!"

He looked at her face fondly and added, "I was acting way out of line earlier and when I fell in your tears I realized that I needed to cool down my temper…"

Sadness felt a warm glow spread through her body and she smiled shyly at him. "Oh. Okay then."

She noticed that Anger was still staring at her in that affectionate way and she shifted uncomfortably, her cheeks beginning to blush slightly. _There it was again! Why did he act so strangely around her ever since that accident…?_

Seeming to notice her discomfort, Anger decided to try lifting her spirits. In a slightly mocking voice he stated, "I don't know what it was about that puddle, but I think that fall caused one of my fuses to blow up or something? Because ever since I looked into your big blue eyes I felt _changed_ …and I mean for the better."

Beside him Sadness sighed deeply and replied, "That's really nice of you Anger." Then she sniffled and felt tears brimming in her eyes again as she protested, "But I'm not worthy of your kindness! I'm always messing everything up for everybody! I even ruined your newspaper with my tear puddle! I'm just a disaster…"

Unable to control her sorrow any longer, she buried her face in her hands and wept pitifully, her whole body shaking from her sobbing.

She was surprised to feel Anger's hand gently rubbing her on the back. Was the red Emotion actually trying to _comfort_ her? She had never known Anger to show such compassion towards anyone else before…

After a few minutes, she heard him say softly, "Hey, I remember reading something nice the other day that might cheer you up Kid."

Anger took a deep breath and began to recite, "Life has not forgotten you. It will hold you in it's hand. It will not let you fall." _(R.M. Rilke)_

Sadness listened in stunned silence. She was not expecting something like that out of Anger! But hearing it made her smile and the tears stopped.

"Oh Anger! That was so beautiful! Thank you for sharing that with me." She said sincerely.

Anger grinned sheepishly and asked, "You like it?"

Sadness nodded shyly and replied, "I love it! But where did you read that? I thought you only ever read about the news and the sport section in the newspaper?"

Anger was grateful that he was naturally red. Otherwise she would have noticed his cheeks turning redder than a chili pepper!

Clearing his throat he replied in mock offense, "Hey I don't just read the news all the time you know!" Then he added in a hushed tone, "I actually like reading poetry. And sometimes I hide a book of poems behind that paper when nobody is looking."

"But why hide it? I mean there's nothing wrong about doing something you enjoy." Sadness inquired gently.

The red Emotion scoffed and stated, "Why? Because I've got an image to maintain here Kiddo! If everyone knew that I was into that sappy stuff, then they wouldn't take me as seriously!"

Sadness squeezed his arm encouragingly and offered, "But if it makes you happy then you shouldn't feel ashamed about it. I doubt the others would think any less of you if they found out that you like poetry… I mean I don't mind." She smiled honestly and added, "I think it's actually quite nice."

This made Anger smile coyly and he admitted, "Eh. I suppose you're right. But I would prefer if you kept this secret anyway."

"Of course. I won't tell anyone if you don't want me to." The blue Emotion promised.

The two Emotions went silent after that, but it wasn't an uneasy silence this time. They were just enjoying being in each other's company and as the night wore on, they continued making conversation, gradually becoming more relaxed in each other's presence until finally they were leaning close together, their shoulders touching affectionately.

Xxx

Fear was up early the next morning, his hand still aching after his ambitious plan to revive Anger from his comatose state last night. The purple Emotion really didn't intend to slap his peer so hard, but the situation had presented a rare opportunity to exact some long awaited revenge on the stout red Emotion and he must have gotten a little carried away.

Now as he studied his sore limb, flexing his fingers gingerly, he was beginning to regret his decision.

 _I think I broke some bones or something because this really hurts!_ Fear thought to himself worriedly.

He decided to go down to the kitchenette to put an ice pack on his injured hand and quietly made his way down the ramp leading to the main room. On the way, he was surprised to hear soft talking coming from the direction of the console, and feeling curious he walked over to investigate.

He gasped aloud as he took in the sight that greeted him. There was Sadness and Anger, sitting together on the couch, holding hands and talking quietly to each other. Anger had a content smile on his face as he listened to the blue Emotion recounting her adventure with Joy in the Mind World the time Riley lost her core memories.

Suddenly the Red Emotion's smile faded and was replaced with a menacing scowl as he noticed Fear standing there, holding his bruised hand. Instinctively, Anger's hand rubbed the sore side of his face as he remembered that slap from last night and he gritted his teeth as steam began rising from his head.

" **So it was YOU Beanpole?! Think you could get one over old Anger when he's down huh? One of my teeth still feels loose because of you! I will get you good for that!"** He started to get up from the couch, fury burning in his eyes.

Fear yelped and backed away, trembling with trepidation. He gulped and stammered, "Hey…Anger…buddy? Look…last night was one bi..big misunderstanding! Can…can't we talk about this…?!"

Anger just growled in response and deepened his glare. **"Talk? You want to talk?! How about I let my FIST do the talking?!"**

Sadness had been watching the tension unfold from beside the red Emotion and now she desperately threw her arms around Anger's neck, begging "Wait Anger! Don't do this! Just calm down okay…"

To her intense relief, she felt him relax in her embrace and he allowed her to hold him for a few seconds until the rage left him and his agitated breathing returned to normal.

Fear could only gape at the sight in disbelief. That was incredible! How did Sadness do that?!

Finally the blue Emotion let him go and looked questioningly into his eyes. Anger returned her gaze and she was relieved to find the harshness gone from his eyes and replaced with the same tenderness he had shown her all night. The two Emotions exchanged a small smile and Anger whispered gently to her, "Thanks Kid. You helped me again."

They all heard the chirpy voice of Joy ring out around the room as the yellow Emotion bounded down the ramp energetically.

"Good morning everyone!" she sang as she came up to them. "I've got a feeling that today is going to be a great day!"

Disgust followed behind her with less enthusiasm, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, and retorted, "Seriously Joy? Do you have to sing and jump around like that every morning?"

The yellow Emotion ignored her and smiled broadly as she took in the sight of Anger and Sadness, sitting together on the couch.

Unable to contain her excitement, she exclaimed, "Oh this is great! I am getting the impression that something magical is happening around here!"

Anger shot her an irritated look but despite himself, he just couldn't get mad whenever he was around Sadness lately. The blue Emotion however, quickly averted her gaze to the floor and blushed.

Disgust took in the scene and wrinkled her nose skeptically. "Those two together? I don't think so!" Then a sly smile appeared on her face as she teased, "After all, red and blue make purple! Ha ha!"

Fear placed his hands on his hips and narrowed his eyes at the green Emotion. "Hey what's so funny about that? There's nothing wrong with purple!"

From the couch Sadness replied shyly, "We were just talking about what happened last night. I felt awful and I wanted to apologize to Anger. That's all."

"Yeah. That's all…" Echoed Anger, trying to sound convincing but disappointment evident in his eyes.

 _After the incident last night Anger realized that something had changed inside of him. He couldn't understand why but he had developed such strong feelings about Sadness ever since he slipped in her tears. Maybe he secretly had these feelings for her before but it had taken a knock to the head to make him realize it?_

 _Whatever the case, he could no longer deny those feelings he felt for her and after spending time together last night, he was hoping that she felt a similar way about him. He desperately wanted to believe that they had shared something special, but why was she so embarrassed to be with him when the others were around? Hadn't she told him last night that you shouldn't hide something if it makes you happy?_

He glanced over at her now and saw that she was biting her lip and avoiding eye contact with anyone. He had to hope that deep down she _did_ like him and he was prepared to do whatever it took to win her over.

Anger remembered how she had promised not to tell the others about him liking to read poetry and he made a silent promise to himself that if she didn't want the others to know how she truly felt about him, then he wouldn't tell them.

The sound of Disgust's indignant scoff shook him out of his thoughts. The green Emotion had a distasteful expression on her face as she commented dryly, "All this mushy lovey-dovey stuff makes me want to barf! I think I'll go make myself some chamomile tea and go back to bed!"

She turned to leave and remarked over her shoulder, "And when I wake up I hope everything will be back to normal!"

Joy and Fear looked at each other and shrugged. Sadness sighed and slid off the couch without a word. Anger was looking dejected but he decided that at the moment he had to concentrate on Riley and make sure today wouldn't be a repeat of yesterday's disastrous events for the teen. He would work on his relationship with Sadness later…

The four remaining Emotions proceeded to take their places at the console and help guide Riley through her day.

Xxx

That night it was Disgust's turn to take Dream Duty but surprisingly, Anger volunteered to do it for her. The green Emotion had woken earlier in the day to discover that things were not in fact back to normal like she'd hoped. Sadness was still moping around and being bashful, while Anger continued to make googly-eyes at her any chance he got.

So when he asked her if he could take Dream Duty for her, she agreed without much protest. She never liked doing Dream Duty anyway and if lover-boy was so keen to do it, then all the better for her!

After Disgust had left and he was alone, Anger took his seat at the console, bringing out his secret book of poetry and reading while the screen showed some lame dream courtesy of Dream Productions, which he couldn't care less about.

He was deeply hoping that Sadness would come and join him at some point tonight just like he had visited her the night before…

Xxx

 **Author's Note:**

She loves him…she loves him not…she loves him…

Hmmm…That's a tough one. I think I might have to consult the wise fortune-teller Madam Sylvia and her crystal ball! But the Madam is old and a bit forgetful, so we might need to wait until she finds, dusts off and polishes her crystal ball…

But she is known to be pretty accurate so the wait will be worth it!

And while we are waiting, I think I will write the 5th chapter of "Secrets of an Emotional Mind". Then as soon as Madam Sylvia is ready, I will write the next chapter of this story and we will find out if Sadness really does love Anger as much as he loves her…

One more thing. I would like to leave you now with the extended quote of the _Rainer Maria Rilke_ poem that Anger read to Sadness:

" _You must not be frightened if a sadness rises up before you larger than any you have ever seen; if a restiveness, like light and cloudshadows, passes over your hands and over all you do. You must think that something is happening with you, that life has not forgotten you, that it holds you in its hand; it will not let you fall. Why do you want to shut out of your life any uneasiness, miseries or depressions? For after all, you do not know what work these conditions are doing inside you."_

-Rainer Maria Rilke, (Letters to a young poet).

Svinorita


	3. Beautiful Mess

Chapter 3.

It was 1 AM. Anger was pacing in front of the console in anticipation, his little feet were hurting and his mind was in turmoil as he waited for Sadness to come to him. Behind him the screen was showing a dream of Rainbow Unicorn galloping through some enchanted looking forest, a sure indication that Riley was sound asleep and content for now. But Anger wasn't paying the slightest attention to this, he had much more pressing thoughts on his mind.

 _She will come…she just has to!_ The short red Emotion told himself with ever mounting desperation. He kept thinking about the other night when Sadness had been doing Dream Duty and he had joined her. Anger felt like they really bonded after that night and he could no longer deny his love for her. He wanted to believe more than anything that she cared about him just as deeply as he adored her. And after seeing the way she reacted when he'd read her poetry and the inviting smile she threw at him whenever she thought he wasn't looking, he had felt pretty certain that it was only a matter of time before she declared her love for him.

But just when it seemed like their romance was blossoming, the other Emotions had to get in the way and ruin everything! Ever since this morning when the others had caught them hanging out together on the couch, Sadness started acting so distant and evasive around him…like she was trying to avoid him?

Anger had always known that she was the shy type but still…if she truly loved him then why was she so worried about what the others might think? If the feeling they shared together was really love, then who cares, right?

 _Unless…_

Anger stopped his aimless pacing as a troubling thought entered his mind. Is it possible that he misread the message he had seen in those beautiful sparkly blue eyes? Was it all just a huge misunderstanding?! What if the look she had given him when he'd slipped in her tear puddle was nothing more than friendly concern?

 _NO!_ He reprimanded himself. He may not be the smartest Emotion around here, but Anger felt positive that he had interpreted something stronger than just concern in that teary look.

And what about that soft touch and warm embrace she had given him to calm him down when he was about to go nuclear on Fear this morning? Surely those couldn't have been mistakes too?

 ** _But what if you did misread the signals, you big red Blockhead!_** Anger scolded himself. **_Congratulations! You have just flushed your reputation down the toilet!_**

The red Emotion knew that he shouldn't be letting these doubts enter his mind now, but as the night wore on and there was still no sign of Sadness, it was getting more and more difficult to silence them. He was beginning to feel like he might blow a fuse or two!

 ** _Are you really that stupid?! Don't you see what a fool you've made of yourself?!_**

Anger was already imagining what the others will say when they walk in here this morning and find him, alone and desolate on that couch…

Disgust would cross her arms and say _"Good morning Mr. Casanova! And where is your damsel in distress huh?"_

Then Fear might come up with some smart-mouth comment like, _"Has Anger been watching Romeo and Juliet lately? Because I think it's been rubbing off on him…Or is that Shrek and Princess Fiona?"_

And Joy would probably burst out laughing and tell him, _"Well Anger, it looks like she's just not that into you after all…"_

The red Emotion promptly slapped himself in the face and groaned, "Knock it off you idiot! Get a grip!"

Why was he letting these doubts win? There was still time before morning…she could still come and prove him wrong…couldn't she?

Anger let out a deep sigh of resignation and shuffled over to the couch. He had been walking in circles for hours in his agitation and now he felt exhausted. He decided to try and take his mind off his complicated love-mess and watched Riley sleeping peacefully for a while. The dream had ended some time ago and now the screen was black, and Anger couldn't help wishing how nice it would be if his own mind could go blank like that for a while because he was fed up with being alone with just his own disturbed thoughts for company…

Gradually the red Emotion began to doze off on the couch, but suddenly a small smile tugged the corner of his mouth as a more pleasant thought flicked through his mind:

 _Well fool or not, getting to know Sadness on a more personal level had all been worth it. She made me open my eyes to a whole different side of my personality that I never knew existed…she made me feel almost happy…?_

Through half-closed eyes, Anger thought he registered a slight movement to his left and before he knew what was happening, he felt the softest of touches like a butterfly's wing, brushing his lips.

Suddenly his eyes shot wide open and to his utter amazement, there she was like a beautiful blue angel kissing his lips tenderly!

Anger nearly fell off the couch from shock! Sadness quickly pulled away and smiled at him shyly as the red Emotion began babbling in disbelief: "Holy Moly and Holy Anne! Am I seeing shooting stars and orange birds and pineapple fishes?! Am I dreaming or Sadness are you really here?!"

Sadness laughed at his silly antics lightly and replied, "Of course I'm here you Big Red Clown!"

Anger relaxed as the bottled up tension left him and he felt a surge of elation flow through him.

 _She did come! I knew she would come! She does love me after all!_ He thought with glee as he took her hand and gently caressed her fingers.

Sadness gave him a welcome smile and looked fondly into his eyes. Then she took a deep breath and ventured, "Anger I wanted to say that I'm sorry for avoiding you today. I saw that really hurt your feelings and I didn't mean to make you feel bad…"

She paused to gather her thoughts before continuing, "Its just that I was thinking about everything that happened since the other night…you know between us…and I needed some time alone to understand my feelings."

Anger listened in respectful silence and felt a wave of relief wash over him. He looked lovingly into her eyes and said, "Hey its okay Kiddo. I understand that I was coming on to you a little strong and I'm sorry if that made you feel uncomfortable. But the thing is I believe that I've fallen in love with you…and I was hoping…maybe…you know…"

He trailed off and looked at his feet in embarrassment. Again he thought about how lucky it was that he was naturally red so she wouldn't notice him blushing!

There. He'd confessed to her! Now the ball was in her court. How will she react to his confession? Will she laugh at him and walk away? Or will she admit her feelings too?

Sadness was quiet as she mulled over his words and Anger almost didn't dare to breathe as he waited for her response. But when she finally looked up at him there was an unmistakable twinkle in her eye and he felt he knew the answer even before she spoke.

"Like I've said, I have been thinking about my feelings for you a lot lately. You have shown that you care about me like no one else ever did and I do feel the same way about you. In fact you are the nicest Emotion I've ever met! Oh Anger, the answer is yes! I do love you!"

Anger felt like his heart was going to break his ribs, it was pounding so hard! There was a huge smile on his face as he opened his arms wide and embraced her fondly. "Kiddo, you've just made me the happiest Emotion in this mind!"

 _Heh! Joy eat your heart out!_ He thought smugly as she hugged him back with the same amount of enthusiasm.

Suddenly their special moment was interrupted by the monitor coming to life.

Sadness looked over at the screen with concern and muttered, "Anger what's happening? Riley is waking up."

Anger was looking at the screen too and feeling confused. Through Riley's point of view, he could make out the alarm clock on her bedside dresser and he noted that it read 3 AM.

"That is strange. Riley shouldn't be waking up yet…" Anger agreed, worry beginning to set in.

The two Emotions watched in silence as Riley got out of bed and brushed a tear from her eye. They could hear her sniffling quietly as she went over to the closet and began rummaging around for something in the back.

"What is she doing?" Anger wondered out loud.

They watched with mounting concern as Riley finally seemed to locate the object she wanted. From the back of the closet she pulled out a small wooden box with intricate patterns carved into it.

Sadness' eyes grew wide and she gasped as she recognized that box. "Oh no! That's her nostalgic box! It contains all her childhood mementos from Minnesota, old toys, photos and stuff!"

Anger shifted with apprehension. "But it's 3 AM! Why is she looking at it now?"

Sadness watched the girl worriedly as she opened the box and began going through the sentimental items inside. She found a small leather pouch containing her first baby tooth as well as her first hockey trophy and her favorite stuffed toy from when she was five; a stripy gray cat named Carola…

Sadness turned to Anger and whispered, "Anger do you think this is our doing?"

The red Emotion gave her a baffled look and replied, "What do you mean Kid? Neither of us were near the console when she woke up, so how could it possibly be our influence?"

"But look at her closely Anger." Sadness urged quietly.

"Notice how she is crying but not? I mean she seems to be neither sad nor angry, but nostalgic? Could our feelings for each other be confusing her somehow?"

Anger was speechless. He didn't understand how two Emotions having strong feelings for one another could be sending mixed signals to their host. But what if Sadness has a point? Could their love be causing Riley to act strangely now?

"I…I don't know what to think Kiddo. She's never acted like this before…" He glanced around the room nervously to see if the other Emotions had arrived to see why Riley had woken up unexpectedly in the middle of the night.

He almost sighed with relief when he noticed that, at least for the time being, he and Sadness were alone in the main room.

Through the monitor, they saw Riley flicking through some old photos from her childhood in Minnesota. She stopped when she came across a picture of a skinny, red-haired boy about the same age as her in blue jeans, a white shirt and a cowboy hat.

Sadness covered her mouth with her hands as she recognized that boy immediately. "Oh no! I knew she was looking for that picture! That was Riley's first childhood crush!"

Anger was looking at the picture and at Sadness and back again. "I don't understand…why did she choose to dig him up now?"

The blue Emotion had a slightly nostalgic look on her own face as she recounted, "Don't you remember him Anger? The Australian boy…Shane? He was kind of handsome like you because he had red-hair…"

"Shane?" Anger mused. "The name sounds vaguely familiar but I can't quite place him…"

Sadness smiled and continued, "Remember when we were living back in Minnesota and Riley was about 10? Shane moved here from some small Australian town with a funny name…Woori Yallock? Something like that? Anyway, he was kind of shy and didn't have any friends so Riley and Meg started to hang out with him and the three became friends over time."

"Ah that's right!" Anger recalled. "Didn't they come up with those silly nicknames for each other? What were they? Smiley Riley, Reckless Freckless and Ginger Ninja?"

Sadness laughed as she remembered. "Yes that's right! Riley really liked that boy. He used to follow her around like a puppy!"

Then the blue Emotion got a misty look in her eyes and she sighed sadly. "But after a few months Shane had to move back to Australia because his grandparents got sick and his dad had to look after the farm. Riley was so sad to see him go…"

Anger nodded slowly and didn't say anything. He could understand how the poor girl must've felt. He had been feeling a similar way earlier when he was waiting for Sadness and not knowing whether she would come or not…

The two Emotions watched as Riley put the picture away and went back to looking through her box. Eventually she found a CD and she looked at it sadly. It was a Kasey Chambers CD that Shane had given to her before he left as something to remember him by.

Clutching the CD to her chest, Riley walked back to her bed and settled down with her laptop. She put the disc into the computer and turning the volume down low so as not to wake her parents, she cried silent tears as she listened to the song "Am I Not Pretty Enough?" begin to play.

 _"Am I not pretty enough? Is my heart too broken? Do I cry too much…?"_

Inside Headquarters, Sadness began humming along to the melancholy voice of Kasey Chambers as the song filled the room.

The blue Emotion felt tears brimming in her eyes as she turned to Anger and commented, "I feel like this song is written about me…"

To emphasize her point, she starting singing along quietly to the next verse:

 _"I live, I breathe, I let it rain on me. I sleep, I wake, I try hard not to break. I crave, I love, I've waited long enough…I try as hard as I can. Am I not pretty enough…?"_

Anger listened in spellbound silence while she sang. He never imagined that Sadness had such a beautiful singing voice! (But then again, no one had ever _heard_ Sadness sing before and the fact that she had chosen to sing in front of him alone, well that made him feel extra special!)

He waited until she was finished and wiped away a small tear from his own eye. She actually made him cry! That's how deeply she moved him! But it wasn't just because of her angelic vocals that the red Emotion was feeling teary…he saw in her eyes that deep down she truly believed the message in those lyrics.

Now Anger took both her hands in his and gazed longingly into her dazzling blue eyes, just like the night he had lain in her tears and these feelings had awakened inside him.

In the softest, most sincere voice he could manage he told her, "Sadness not only are you pretty enough, but you are the most beautiful girl in the whole universe to me!"

She looked taken aback by this declaration at first. But then a tiny smile of gratitude appeared on her face and she returned his look of love with the same intensity.

"Oh Anger! I really do love you!"

Suddenly their little romantic moment was rudely interrupted by some exaggerated clapping coming from behind them.

Mortified, the two Emotions whirled around, only to discover that they had drawn an audience. Fear, Joy and Disgust had arrived to investigate the cause of Riley's impromptu alertness at this hour and instead had stumbled upon the scene of the two love-struck Emotions apparently lost in their own little fairytale.

The clapping was coming from Disgust as she regarded the pair with a look of distaste, eyebrows raised and mouth twisted in a smirk.

"Touché." She announced sarcastically. "It's a good thing I haven't had breakfast yet, otherwise someone would have to be mopping the floor right now!"

Sadness and Anger both stared blankly at the other Emotions as the reality dawned on them. Their love was out in the open now and they had to prepare to face the barrage of scrutiny the other Emotions would hurl at them…

Joy was grinning manically as she watched the couple with unbridled enthusiasm.

"Oh this is so awesome! Emotions falling in love is the most exciting thing that's happened in here for a long time!" She exclaimed happily while doing a little dance on the spot from sheer bliss.

Fear was looking around uncomfortably and fiddling with his bowtie absent-mindedly, as though he was unsure of what to make of this situation.

Disgust continued glaring at the lovers petulantly as she pointed to the monitor and sniped, "I just knew this whole lovey-dovey thing was going to go pear shaped! Look what you two have done now! You have made Riley open her _Sentimenti-Fundamenti_ box which hasn't been opened for two years!"

The others all glanced at the monitor and sure enough, Riley had gone back to looking through her precious box of childhood memorabilia.

Fear scratched his chin thoughtfully and asked, "Sentimenti-what box? Is that Latin or something?"

Disgust rolled her eyes in exasperation and stated, "No! Duh! It's just trendy! _Sentimental-Foundation_ box. It contains sentimental items from Riley's past and foundation as in you need a strong emotional foundation to function properly…and some good L'Oréal facial foundation if you want to look gorgeous like me!"

All five Emotions watched the monitor in silence as Riley came back to that picture of Shane. She took it out again and stared fondly at it for a long time.

Joy sighed dreamily and remarked, "What lovely memories! I adored Shane! He was such a sweet boy and he always made Riley smile with his jokes and that funny Australian slang he used to throw into his sentences!"

Disgust snorted indignantly and retorted, "Oh sure he made her smile all right! Remember that time he gave her that jar of Vegemite? Riley ended up brushing her teeth three times and going through a whole packet of Tripledent Gum after eating one spoonful!"

The green Emotion shuddered at the memory and felt the bile rising into her throat as she added, "I'm telling you, that stuff is not meant for human consumption!"

Joy shrugged innocently and commented, "Yeah…but Dad liked it remember!" She beamed happily as she recalled how Bill had polished off the whole jar with gusto.

Disgust crossed her arms and reminded her yellow companion how Dad wasn't a "Happy Little Vegemite when he had to get up and drink water every half an hour for the rest of the day and night!"

"Although I do admit those Caramelo Koala chocolates were pretty yummy!" Disgust confessed.

Riley yawned and glanced at her alarm clock. It was now 4 AM! She realized that unless she wanted to be like a zombie in school today from lack of sleep, she had better go back to bed and catch at least an hour or two of shut-eye.

She carefully put all her treasured belongings into her 'Sentimental-Fundamental' box and put it back into the closet. But before she retired to her bed for the remainder of the night, Riley made sure to put the photo of Shane into her school bag. She didn't understand why, but she felt like she wanted to look at him a few more times today…

Inside Headquarters, Anger and Sadness gave each other a knowing smile as understanding passed between them.

Xxx

Joy decided that she wanted to take Dream Duty tonight. It had been a long and tiring day but overall the mood had remained positive both in Riley's case and for her Emotions. Riley was surprisingly unaffected in school despite her early morning reminiscences, although her attention did falter from her schoolwork on a few occasions when she felt compelled to take out and study that picture of Shane…

But she no longer felt gloomy and nostalgic when she looked at the photo. Instead by the end of the day she was able to look back and smile fondly at the memory of that time in her childhood. (Her sudden positive take on the situation was largely due to Joy; who had been dominate at the controls throughout the day…)

The other Emotions didn't seem to mind letting Joy do most of the driving today. They all chipped-in to do their necessary parts when the circumstances arose, but generally the atmosphere inside Headquarters had been calm and collected.

With their romance out in the open now, Anger and Sadness felt free to express their feelings for one another without hesitation, and the two Emotions had remained at each other's sides throughout the day, holding hands and making pleasant conversation whenever the opportunity arose but never letting their love distract them from their duties of helping Riley through her day.

So it was that despite doing most of the work today, Joy also volunteered to take Dream Duty tonight. The excitable yellow Emotion was still feeling pumped after the success of today. Riley had been having a pretty rough couple of weeks now, and today had finally turned out to be cheerful and uplifting for a change!

Besides, she still wanted to repay Sadness for taking her shift for her the other night. (She also noted the way Sadness had been sticking close to Anger throughout the day and she thought the blue Emotion would appreciate being free to spend some quality time with her Prince Charming tonight!)

After saying goodnight to Fear and Disgust, Joy took her seat at the console and waited to see what Dream Productions would dish up for their girl tonight.

Over by the windows looking out across the Islands of Personality, Anger turned to Sadness and scratching the back of his head coyly, he asked "You know it sure is a beautiful night Kiddo. I'm not feeling quite sleepy yet and I was wondering if maybe you might want to take a walk with me out there?"

Sadness smiled shyly back at him and stated, "Su…sure Anger…I'd love to! Where do you have in mind?"

Anger laughed dryly and exclaimed, "Oh I don't really mind…we could go to Imagination Land or maybe catch a private screening at Dream Productions?"

He gazed lovingly into her eyes and replied, "Anywhere. As long as we are together."

Sadness beamed at him and her eyes sparkled with adoration. But then she let out a soft sigh and looked down worriedly at the floor.

"Anger, are we doing the right thing by Riley?"

Anger's smile faded and he gave her a grave look. "What do you mean Kiddo?"

But he knew exactly what she was talking about. She was worried that their love for each other was somehow having a negative effect on Riley. Like last night when she had gone to her sentimental-what's-it-called box and started looking through those childhood memories from Minnesota.

Now Anger tried to put on a gentle yet convincing voice as he reassured the blue Emotion, "I don't think we are doing anything wrong by making her remember those good times. There is nothing wrong with feeling sad and missing something that is in the past…and maybe even feeling a bit angry that it's gone and wondering why it had to turn out that way…"

He put a gentle hand on her shoulder and smiled encouragingly. "I think we are just helping Riley grow up and become a better person by making her realize that a little bit of nostalgia is a good thing every now and then. It will make her stronger and happier in the present."

Sadness was listening in awed silence to his explanation. She never imagined that Anger was such a deep thinker! It was just like the other night when he told her that he enjoys reading poetry in private…

She realized that there is so much more to this short, fiery red Emotion than she or any of the others had ever given him credit for! All this time they had believed that Anger was just impulsive, hot-tempered and not all that smart…but now she knew the truth.

 _He keeps his true nature hidden from the others because deep down, he is afraid of being judged! So instead he acts the way he does because he is showing them what they expect to see…_

Sadness felt very special knowing that Anger had chosen to reveal his true nature to her like this. It was proof of exactly how much he adored her and the thought made her heart beat faster with love for him.

"Kid? Kiddo? Are you alright?"

Sadness shook her head to clear the daydream as she noticed that Anger was looking at her with deep concern. She had been so lost in her thoughts that she hadn't realized she had been staring off into space for some time!

Now she smiled at him and nodded in confirmation.

"Oh good! I thought I lost you there for a minute!" the red Emotion let out a relieved sigh.

He glanced over at the console and saw Joy laughing as a dream showing Riley, Meg and Shane goofing around on a frozen lake was playing. Anger smiled warmly and whispered, "Let Riley enjoy her dream for now…"

Then he turned his attention back to Sadness.

"Hey, I wanted to ask you about that kiss earlier Kiddo…" the red Emotion looked questioningly at her and stammered, "Was I dreaming? Did that actually happen? Were you just messing with me…?"

He trailed off as Sadness leaned over and gently caressed his face with her soft little hands. Then she closed her eyes and gave him another kiss on the lips, holding it for longer this time…

Suddenly steam shot from the top of Anger's head like a clothes iron as love surged through his veins like fire and his heart almost did a somersault inside his chest!

Sadness coughed and spluttered as the steam fogged up her glasses and she was rendered temporarily blind!

Realizing what he'd done, Anger gasped and groaning apologetically, he muttered, "Gosh I'm such a clumsy nit-wit! Look what I've done now!"

Sadness had taken her glasses off to let the fog clear and she laughed genuinely as she replied, "That's alright! They needed a good steam-cleaning anyway!"

The two Emotions looked at each other and burst out laughing with such gusto that even Joy turned around from the console and joined in. As usual her infectious laughter only spurned them on and soon all three Emotions were in hysterics!

Finally after the excitement died down, Anger and Sadness proceeded to walk towards the Recall Tube hand in hand.

Xxx

 **Author's Note:**

Wow! That was the longest chapter yet! And I can tell you that's not all she wrote…there is still more to come before I can say "They Lived Happily Ever After!" But I think I'll let you all stew on that one a little longer… For now let Anger and Sadness enjoy their romantic walk through the Mind World while I get back to the family drama unfolding in "Secrets of an Emotional Mind"…

Perhaps some of you were reading this chapter and happened to recognize yourselves hidden in the story? In case you missed it, I would like to personally thank everyone who reviewed and/or favorited this story!

Here is a special thank you to all the following:

 **Orangebird124**

 **HollyAnne1084**

 **Tripledent**

 **Justin Bonesteel**

 **Pineapplefish**

 **Coolcat7789**

 **dreaminglittlestar**

All of your support helps give me inspiration and keeps this story going! I also wish to extend my thanks to all the other readers out there…I hope you are enjoying this little love drama!

And if I didn't mention your names in the story, don't worry! I have not forgotten you! I just didn't know how to incorporate everyone's name into the story…but maybe the chance will come up in one of my future chapters! So stay tuned folks! :)

Svinorita


	4. Love Waves

Chapter 4.

"Hi ho my wonderful colleagues!" Joy sings merrily as she walks into the main room the next morning after getting herself a cup of coffee. Despite spending the previous night doing Dream Duty, the cheerful yellow Emotion didn't seem even a tiny bit tired as she greeted her fellow Emotions with as much exuberance as always.

Now she paused in the center of the control room and closing her eyes, took a deep breath as a serene smile spread across her face. "It's a beautiful morning! I can almost smell that spring is in the air!"

She opened her eyes and noticed that Disgust was staring at her with as much enthusiasm as if she had just announced that they should all have broccoli for breakfast today! The green Emotion was tapping her foot irritably on the floor and her arms were crossed as she regarded her yellow companion with undisguised petulance scrawled all over her pretty face.

Joy didn't seem fazed in the slightest and she simply beamed even more in response, stating, "Now, now Disgust. Wipe that frown off your face! You don't want to map that lovely face with wrinkles do you?"

Disgust rolled her eyes in exasperation and retorted, "Give me a break Joy! Look at them!"

She pointed a finger accusingly at Anger and Sadness, who were sitting in the corner by the window and chatting away happily as they relived their little moonlight walk through Imagination Land last night. The two Emotions had their arms wrapped fondly around one another and were staring deeply into each other's eyes.

Sadness whispered something to Anger that none of the others could hear and the stout red Emotion let out a hearty laugh which was definitely **not** like the Anger they all knew. Then he leaned forward and gave Sadness a tender peck on the cheek, causing the blue Emotion to blush shyly. She responded by rubbing his back affectionately and leaning her head against Anger's broad shoulder.

Sadness sighed dreamily and commented, "Oh Darling, remember last night when we were walking through Cloud Town in Imagination Land and you gave me that envelope and told me not to open it until the morning?"

She looked up at him with those irresistible puppy-dog eyes of hers and pleaded, "Can I please open it now? All this anticipation is making me sweat and I don't want to smell like a six month old bouquet!"

Anger chuckled softly and replied, "Kiddo, you always smell like the freshest, most fragrant rose to me!"

He gently squeezed her arm and joked, "Even after you've just eaten onion rings, your kiss still tastes as sweet as a cherry pie!"

Disgust clapped her hands in an exaggerated manner and remarked dryly, "Now that's amore!"

"Oh come on Disgust!" Joy prompted her green friend encouragingly. "They're adorable!"

Disgust huffed indignantly and scoffed, "Oh please! There should be a sign of warning on the door saying, _Contagious Area…Dripping with love and affection! Enter at your own risk!"_

Joy went silent for a second as she thought about Disgust's statement. Then a mischievous smile crept across her face and she replied, "Hey speaking of contagious, I think it might be rubbing off on you a little Disgust…I saw that look you were giving Fear when he walked in here this morning!"

Fear had been silently sipping his coffee over by the console and as soon as he heard Joy's remark, he felt the coffee going down the wrong way and he began chocking and spluttering from shock!

Disgust glared in disbelief at Joy and shot back matter-of-factly, "And I think Joy dear, you need to get your eyes checked! Maybe you should go and ask Sadness if you can borrow her glasses!"

A look of revelation appeared on the green Emotion's face and she shuddered before adding quickly, "On second thoughts don't! Because lately Sadness' glasses are always getting fogged up from being in such close proximity to Lover Boy's face over there…"

She gestured distastefully at Anger and cautioned, "It would be like looking through a pink haze!"

Joy just laughed dismissively and urged, "Now, now! Let's just all be happy and allow them to have their moment…after all today is Valentine's Day!"

Over by the window, Anger's face lit up with excitement and he whispered to Sadness, "Hey Kiddo, feel free to open my letter anytime you're ready!"

Then he added with a hint of apprehension in his voice, "Remember how I told you about my passion for poetry a few nights ago? Well I wanted you to know how much you really mean to me…so I wrote a little something special for you!"

The red Emotion began twiddling his thumbs and averted his gaze to the floor coyly as Sadness let out a giggle of excitement and opened the envelope eagerly.

"I hope you like it…" Anger mumbled more to himself than to her as she began reading the poem and a genuine smile of gratitude appeared on her face.

 **"Anger is red,**

 **Sadness is blue,**

 **You are so sad and I am so bad,**

 **If you put your hand in mine,**

 **I know we will be fine,**

 **You won't be sad and I won't be bad,**

 **Love will claim us.**

 **You'll be my girl and I'll be your man,**

 **Be my Valentine and together we will show them that love is in the air,**

 **Love you Kiddo,**

 **Your Big Red."**

Sadness finished reading and looked at Anger with tears of love in her eyes. "Oh Anger! That was so beautiful! It makes me want to cry…"

Anger shifted uncomfortably next to her. "I'm sorry Kid! I didn't mean to make you sad…"

Sadness gave him a look of surprise and nudged him playfully in the ribs with her elbow. "No you Big Red Brickhead! These are tears of happiness not tears of misery!"

"Ohhh…" Anger breathed a sigh of relief. Then he looked questioningly into her eyes and ventured, "So you like it then?"

Sadness nodded eagerly and gave him an appreciative kiss on the lips. The top of Anger's head began to sizzle like a barbeque grill as he cherished the moment.

When Sadness pulled away, she had a shy smile on her face and she told him, "I actually tried to write a poem for you as well because I know how much you adore poetry…but mine is not nearly as good as yours!"

Anger smiled back fondly at her and replied, "You did Kiddo? I can't wait to see it!" He rubbed his hands together in anticipation and Sadness smiled at his enthusiasm.

"Okay Darling! Wait right here, while I go get it for you…" The blue Emotion got up from the floor and hurried excitedly to her bedroom to retrieve Anger's poem.

Joy watched the scene happily and clapped her hands out of sheer delight. "That's what I'm talking about!"

Disgust shook her head in defeat and muttered, "Oh, I give up!"

Fear just shrugged indifferently and went back to drinking his coffee as Joy skipped lightly over to the console and began pressing some buttons.

"While we all wait for Sadness to return, let's see what Riley is getting up to…"

She pushed a final button and the monitor that showed the Emotions the world through Riley's eyes came on. Their girl was apparently sitting up in bed with her laptop on her knees, talking to her best friend from Minnesota, Meg via Skype.

The four Emotions gathered around the monitor and watched the conversation unfolding through the screen.

On the laptop, Meg's face suddenly lit up with excitement as she appeared to focus on something off to Riley's right and they all heard her exclaim, "Oh my gosh! Is that Queen Carola I see over there?!"

Riley looked down at the stripy gray cat plush that was laying on the bed beside her and she laughed in acknowledgment.

"It sure is! Say hello to Her Meowness!"

Riley went on to explain to Meg how she came upon the treasured toy from her childhood. "The other day I was feeling a little down, so I decided to look through my nostalgic box and I found Carola. She's been on my bed ever since!"

Meg smiled and replied, "I remember when we were like five and how you used to take Carola with you just about everywhere!"

Riley shrugged. "Well my parents wouldn't let me have a real cat, so I used to pretend that Carola was real instead! She was like a special friend to me…"

Suddenly Riley's eyes went wide as she remembered something else she dug up from her past the other night…

"Speaking of special friends…I also found some old photos of you, me and our Australian friend Shane! Then the strangest thing happened! I checked my Skype the next day and I received a request from him asking me to add him to my contacts!"

Meg let out a little squeal of delight and said, "Hey I remember Shane! He was that tall, red-haired boy that started hanging out with us at school. He was kind of shy but sweet and fun to be around once we became friends!"

Riley nodded in agreement and uttered in wonder, "It almost feels supernatural or something…I really don't know what to think! One minute I'm looking at his picture then out of the blue he asks me to add him to my Skype! What do you think Meg? Should I accept his request?"

Meg gave her a look that seemed to say _'are you kidding?'_ Then she nodded encouragingly and replied, "Of course Riley! You should definitely accept him! Shane was so cool remember?"

Then Meg got a sly glint in her eye and she began lecturing Riley like a teacher talking to a class of misbehaving children: "Don't forget that Australian actors are so hot in Hollywood right now! Those breath-taking Hemsworth Brothers are on every girls' wish list!"

Inside Headquarters Disgust nodded in agreement. "Amen to that Meg! They are definitely on _my_ wish list!"

Sadness had returned to rejoin the others a few moments ago and she overheard the last part of Meg and Riley's conversation. Now from the back of the room she shared her own thoughts on the subject:

"Actually, I think Hugh Jackman is pretty nice…"

Everyone turned and looked nervously at Anger as they could have sworn that they almost heard his jaw hit the ground in response to this statement!

Disgust gave Sadness a sympathetic look and chided, "Well Sadness, it looks like you just made Mr. Red feel _Les Miserables!"_

Sadness covered her mouth with her hands guiltily and rushed over to the crestfallen Anger, grabbing his arm desperately and pleading, "Oh Darling! I didn't mean it that way! He and his wife have been married for so many years and it just made me think about how much I want to spend the rest of my life with you!"

Fear snorted in bemusement and said flatly, "Hey Mr. Red is not as innocent as you think! I saw him ogling J-Lo the other day when Riley was watching that music video and boy was he drooling!"

Out of the corner of his eye, Fear caught Joy giving him the "Be quiet" gesture as she urged in a hushed voice "B.P! Watch yourself!"

This made Fear feel annoyed and he stubbornly placed his hands on his hips and pouted, "You know, I am beginning to get sick of this! Why is everyone calling me _British Petrol_ lately?!"

Disgust smacked her forehead in disbelief and corrected, "Duh numbskull! She meant _Beanpole_ , oh Simple One!"

Fear's axon drooped in embarrassment and he turned a few shades lighter as he mumbled, "Oh…right…"

Before the Emotions could get into any further discussions on the topic, they were all interrupted by Riley yelling excitedly, "Yes! Yes I think I will do it!"

"That's the spirit! You go girl!" Meg encouraged her from the computer screen.

Joy cheered and fist-pumped the air. "Fair Dinkum Riley!"

The other Emotions all gave her a puzzled look and Disgust muttered, "Um, Joy? What was that about?"

Joy laughed light-heartedly and explained, "I think that's Australian slang for ' _that's what I'm talking about?'_ I'm not a hundred percent sure…" she admitted with a shrug.

"…But I remember that Shane used to say it a lot, so it must be good!"

Now they heard Riley saying, "How are things with you Meg? Did you finally meet your British cool cat or royalty?"

Meg chuckled nervously and replied, "It's not anything like that Riley! After all, Prince Harry is already taken!"

Suddenly Meg went beetroot-red as she confessed, "But I actually did meet someone nice at school…"

Riley couldn't contain her excitement (partially thanks to Joy leaning absent-mindedly on a lever) and she chanted, "Oh do I know him?! Do I know him?! Tell me Meg! What's his name?!"

Meg smiled shyly and started to say, "Well his name is Justin Bonest-…" before catching herself and responding secretively, "You know what? Let's just call him J.B why don't we?"

Riley let out a sigh of resignation. "Okay then. J.B it is my girl…but if I'm thinking of the same Justin here, I gotta admit he's hot!"

Meg seemed to turn two shades redder before saying sheepishly, "I have to go now Riley! It was nice catching up with you and don't forget to accept Shane's request!"

Then she looked at the stuffed cat beside Riley and waved enthusiastically. "Bye your Meowness!"

While the others were still concentrating on Riley, Sadness took Anger by the hand and led him back to their corner by the window.

She looked shyly into his deep amber-colored eyes and offered him a folded piece of paper, saying in a whisper, "Here's my own little piece of poetry just for you Anger…like I said it's nowhere near as good as the one you gave me but I tried my best. I hope you enjoy it!"

Anger took the piece of paper from her with hands that were trembling from anticipation, then giving her a warm smile, he unfolded the paper and started reading in a quiet voice so the others wouldn't hear:

 **"Mother Earth,**

 **Father Time,**

 **I am yours,**

 **You are mine,**

 **Bells are ringing and birds are singing,**

 **Songs of love,**

 **From above,**

 **I will cry you a puddle,**

 **If you give me a cuddle,**

 **It is a special time to be loved by my Valentine."**

Anger finished reading and wiped a tear from his eye as Sadness looked up at him expectantly.

"So what did you think? Was it okay?" She ventured timidly.

Anger gave a little laugh of bewilderment and gazed longingly at the blue Emotion with tear-filled eyes before stating, "Was it okay? Kid that was the most beautiful piece of poetry I've ever read in my life!"

"Really?" Sadness asked hopefully.

Anger nodded and jabbed a thumb at his chest whilst stating, "You know it takes something special to move this stubborn, hot-headed Emotion to tears! I'm not exactly the most sensitive of Emotions…in fact I usually have only one default setting, and that's to be a loud-mouthed angry grouch that often acts without thinking about the consequences my actions have on those around me!"

He placed a hand over his heart and told her with complete sincerity, "What you wrote really tugged at my heartstrings Kiddo! You mean the world to me and I want you to know that I'd do anything to make you happy!"

Sadness felt a sob escape from her throat as she threw her arms around the red Emotion and they held each other in a loving embrace.

"I love you so much Anger…" she whispered in between sobs.

"I love you too Sadness…I always have…" Anger replied as he held her tight.

Then he whispered softly into her ear, "Hey how's about we go down to Dream Productions tonight? I think they are showing a late screening of the movie ' _Grease_ ' and I was wondering if you'd like to go and see it with me…"

"I'd absolutely love to Darling!" Sadness replied as she laid her head against Anger's chest and listened to the steady beating of his heart.

Xxx

That night, Joy could definitely feel the love in the air! The yellow Emotion did a happy dance around Headquarters while singing out, "I love it! I love it! I love it! Love is everywhere!"

She stopped in the middle of the room and started listing off her fingers:

"First Sadness and Anger…

Then Meg and J.B…

It looks like Riley and Shane…

And I even saw Riley's Dad showing the beautiful bracelet he got for her Mom for Valentine's Day!"

Disgust looked at her yellow companion with a bored expression on her face and yawned loudly.

"Whatever you say Joy…" She commented flatly.

Then she got a dreamy twinkle in her emerald eyes and smiled smugly to herself.

"I'm feeling really tired. I think I'll go and put on a facial mask…then I'm off to bed to dream about myself and those stunning Hemsworth Brothers gate-crashing some high-end Hollywood party!"

With that, she turned lightly on her heel and sauntered off towards her bedroom.

Joy shrugged to herself dismissively and skipped up to Fear, who was over by the console preparing himself for a long night of Dream duty – one of his least favorite tasks to perform for Riley.

Just as the purple Emotion was settling down on his chair with a cup of tea in his hands, he felt a small tap on his shoulder.

Turning around Fear was surprised to see Joy grinning maniacally at him.

"Hey Mr. British Prince! Mind if I join you on Dream Duty tonight? I'm not feeling quite sleepy…"

Fear had leisurely begun to sip his tea, and upon hearing Joy's request, he found himself nearly choking for the second time that day! In fact the shock caused him to spray a stream of tea from his mouth like an erupting volcano, which only narrowly missed ending up all over Joy's dress thanks to her quick reactions!

As he stared at her wide-eyed in disbelief, a curious thought crossed his mind:

 _Did anyone write a manual called "How to Figure out Girls?!"_

Xxx

Two hours later, there was an unmistakable sense of harmony and love in the air as the balmy spring night wore on.

Everyone seemed to be lost in their own little romantic fantasy as Valentine's Day drew to a close…

Riley was sleeping peacefully, a serene expression on her face summing up the mood inside Headquarters. (Either that, or maybe she was dreaming about Shane…?)

Disgust was definitely dreaming about her new favorite movie stars…although whether they were gate-crashing a lavish party in Hollywood like she'd hoped, we'll never know!

Over at the console, Joy was chattering away with even more enthusiasm than usual, occasionally throwing in an excited laugh whilst giving Fear a friendly poke in the ribs…

For his part, Fear decided that he had one too many near misses with death today, and he chose to put away his tea if he planned on surviving this night! In a way he was grateful for the distraction to an otherwise long and boring night of Dream Duty, but he couldn't understand Joy's unexpected interest in him all of a sudden…which naturally made him a little nervous.

Still, Fear had to admit that he secretly found the attention kind of nice, even if he wasn't about to let Joy know that!

As for Anger and Sadness…?

The two lovers had found a secluded area of Dream Productions. And it was here away from prying eyes that the red and blue Emotions were dancing away to the song _"You're The One That I Want"_ while the movie ' _Grease'_ played on a big screen overhead.

Anger was busy busting out his best Travolta moves while Sadness had his necktie wrapped around her wrist and was slowly pulling him towards her with her eyes closed and lips puckered up for a kiss…

The two Emotions had finally got their fairytale ending…they lived happily ever after!

 **Author's Note:**

 **There you go folks! I really hoped you all enjoyed reading this little Emotional love story as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

 **(Yes sadly this is the end of the story…I wish the fairytale never has to end for our little red and blue friends, but I feel like I've covered everything I can in these four chapters and I can't see what else I could mention without repeating things. Like I said this was really fun to write but as they say: all good things must come to an end…)**

 **Like I did in the previous chapter, some of you may have recognized your names hidden within this chapter…I said I would include those that I couldn't incorporate into the previous chapter in my future chapters and I hope you didn't mind me using your names here :)**

 **I want to thank everyone who read and reviewed this story one more time! A special thank you to Orangebird124, this story was requested by you and I hope you enjoyed what I managed to put together!**

 **Since I had such a great time doing this request, I just want to say that if anyone has any requests for "Inside Out" stories that you may want me to write, feel free to share your suggestions with me! I will welcome any of your ideas and who knows? Maybe I will choose your idea for my next story!**

 **Svinorita**


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